Methods and apparatuses for transferring heat from stacked microfeature devices are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a microfeature device assembly comprises a support member having terminals and a first microelectronic die having first external contacts carried by the support member. The first external contacts are operatively coupled to the terminals on the support member. The assembly also includes a second microelectronic die having integrated circuitry and second external contacts electrically coupled to the first external contacts. The first die is between the support member and the second die. The assembly can further include a heat transfer unit between the first die and the second die. The heat transfer unit includes a first heat transfer portion, a second heat transfer portion, and a gap between the first and second heat transfer portions such that the first external contacts and the second external contacts are aligned with the gap.